The Seattle Kraken rolled into Ottawa on Thursday night for Game 2 of their six-game road trip. The Ottawa Senators were on the second game of a back-to-back, having lost the first leg to the Buffalo Sabres 8-4 the night before. The Kraken got some respect from Ottawa, as the Senators started their No. 1 goaltender, Linus Ullmark, after opting for backup Leevi Meriläinen the previous night. Ottawa was also without captain Brady Tkachuk, who is out six-to-eight weeks with a hand injury.

With Shane Wright’s grandparents in attendance, the Kraken got off to a quick start with Wright scoring in the first five minutes. The Senators and Kraken then traded goals before ending regulation tied 3-3.

Seattle dominated puck possession in overtime but couldn’t find the winner, ultimately falling in the shootout. Shane Pinto and Tim Stützle scored for Ottawa to seal the 4-3 victory. Still, the Kraken earned a point and improved to 2-0-2, maintaining a .750 points percentage through their first four games.

Takeaway #1: First goals

Wright and Chandler Stephenson both scored their first goals of the season, with Stephenson lighting the lamp twice. The forward lineup stayed the same, but Ryan Winterton and Eeli Tolvanen swapped spots. Neither recorded a point, but their lines contributed offensively, and we all know scoring from all four lines will be needed for Seattle to have success this season.

Stephenson’s first goal came from an aggressive forecheck and takeaway by Jaden Schwartz and Tolvanen, followed by a laser shot that hit the post, bounced off Ullmark, and in. Both Wright and Stephenson scored on rebounds—a good sign that the Kraken are getting pucks to the net with support to clean up the scraps.

Takeaway #2: Backup goaltending

After starting the first three games, it was nice to see Joey Daccord get a full day off. This is one benefit of carrying three goalies—a situation I’m not advocating for—but it allowed Philipp Grubauer and Matt Murray to share the workload.

Grubauer wasn’t perfect, but only one of the three goals (the tying goal) against felt like one he should have stopped. To the naked eye, it appeared Grubauer just whiffed on it, but Jamie Oleksiak may have screened him on the shot from Dylan Cozens, who fired quickly off the boards before Grubauer could track the puck. Regardless, this one came at a tough time, with the Kraken trying to secure a regulation win deep in the third period.

The first Senators goal came off an unlucky bounce that went right to Pinto, who buried his league-leading sixth of the season just seconds after a power play expired. Ottawa’s second goal came on the man advantage, with Claude Giroux threading a cross-ice pass to David Perron, who fired it home short side.

Grubauer did enough to keep Seattle in the game, earning the team a point. Just a hunch, but we could see Murray in net when the Kraken face the Philadelphia Flyers on Oct. 20, the first leg of back-to-back games.

Takeway #3: No quit

The season is young, but in both games of this road trip, Seattle has trailed at times and battled back. In both contests, they also held a third-period lead—a positive sign. Unfortunately, they surrendered late goals in each that forced overtime before losing, but they still earned points both nights. The Kraken aren’t folding, and that resilience has them collecting points in all four games this season. If they keep competing like this, the points will keep rolling in.

The Kraken improved as the game went on. After trailing 2-1 in the first period, they outshot the Senators 25-16, including a 5-1 edge in overtime. Although they left with a shootout loss, Seattle outplayed Ottawa and, on most nights, would likely come away with a win.

Strong start to season continues

The Kraken are off to a strong start but will need to dig in as the road trip gets tougher. Next up is the Toronto Maple Leafs, a team Seattle has struggled against, going just 1-7 all time. After that, they face their first back-to-back set of the season.

Freddy Gaudreau left in the second period after going awkwardly into the boards. There was no update on his status, but he did not return. Of course, Berkly Catton is still on the roster and waiting in the wings for his NHL debut.